


For it is by grace you have been saved

by NightingalesAndHandGrenades (Nightingalesandhandgrenades)



Category: The Exorcist (TV)
Genre: Don't judge lest be judged, F/F, F/M, M/M, Marcus/Peter/Tomas - Freeform, OT3, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Religious text, Tomarcus
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 18:19:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17350217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightingalesandhandgrenades/pseuds/NightingalesAndHandGrenades
Summary: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. This is the way Mass starts. This is also the way Marcus starts praying when God speaks to him again, sending him back to Tomas. He extends His forgiveness, encourages Marcus to trust his instincts, and offers him a chance of Love.





	1. Introductory Rites

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfic was one of my works for NaNoWriMo last year. It started out from me trying to imagine how Marcus Keane would do Mass. And then I thought, that the Mass format perfectly leads itself to separating chapters in this fandom. It was also after I looked at readings for church many Sundays ago and thought they fit the idea perfectly.
> 
> I don't own the characters or the base material, and all this is born from my personal imagination.

_In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit._

Sometimes the easy things are the hardest things. Breathing in and out. Counting heart beats. Existing but not being yourself. Your body isn’t yours anymore. It has been taken over by an entity that does not mean well.

You can see your body and feel it, but it’s not yours anymore. He prays and prays, and recites like a mantra.

‘’ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit…’’

Until he feels the dark claws release him. He can suddenly breathe again and his eyes are becoming clear. He can see again, but his body feels broken. Agony of the physical body is only secondary to the pain of the spirit he feels.

Possession feels like a disease. A virus. Shortness of breath, chest pain...  fewer and the constant headache before he loses all capabilities to think about anything else besides survival.

_I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do_

God seems to be silent. There are no sudden flashes, no sudden movements, and no revelations. He expects some, but none happen. The only thing he can continue doing is pray. It falls from his lips like a stream of words, and he doesn’t have any idea if God is listening. For others it sounds like gibberish. He must sound like a drug addict on a high.

‘’God,’’ he thinks, ‘’God, please. Listen to me and to us. Bless us and keep us, and give us strength to continue…’’

His faith and love he has in his heart are the only things that keep him going. It would be so easy to let the darkness take over, and swallow him. His limbs are filled with led, he is tired. Sleep would be so welcome now.

_Brethren let us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries._

Waking up in a hospital bed is not an amazing feeling. The beeping of monitors and the fuzziness. However, it means he is alive and he is himself. There are hushed voices around the bed, so pretending to be asleep still is easier. Soon sleep claims him again, body still weak and broken. It will take some time.  He knows Marcus is near, he feels fingers brush hair off his forehead, and the briefest touch of lips to his brow. Through the fog of sleep he thinks he recognizes Marcus’ accented voice, chanting the Lord’s Prayer.  It lulls Tomas back to sleep, and allows his overheated brain to turn off and rest. There are flashes of memory, but he can’t make himself wake up.

Things had gone south after the events on the island. Tomas is glad that the kids were able to get off it, but none of them really came out of the experience unharmed. Marcus decided not to go with Tomas and Mouse who insisted on continuing the fight. That’s all she’s ever known, and Tomas cannot fault her. He wants to beg Marcus to come, or to stay with him. He doesn’t do either. Instead, he leaves. For the sake of sanity, Tomas hopes that Marcus will talk to someone.

He doesn’t want to see his friend go back into solitude and loneliness. His friend. His brother and so much more. It has been at the back of his mind for weeks now, but Tomas refuses to examine his own feelings. He knows he should pray about it, but praying is not going to resolve it. Move to a new place, forget all this mess, and start from scratch. Perhaps Marcus would be there. They could attempt to just… be.

But for now he is gone, and Tomas can only do what feels right. Following Mouse to the next possession victim.  They find a new person that needs help, and Tomas puts himself to work. He gets better, stronger, and his faith grows in strength too. He prays for Marcus every day, prays that God will bring them back together. He feels like a piece of his soul is now permanently missing, and no amount of successful exorcisms are going to fill the hole. Until that evening that lands Tomas in hospital, and he hears Marcus’ voice again, not completely believing he simply isn’t on death’s door and hallucinating.

It takes Tomas two days to return from the fog and the shadows of nothingness, and another day and a half to be able to finally open his eyes and focus. He is thirsty and still feels exhausted, but he has to make sure Marcus is not simply a fruit of his imagination. The first person he sees in the room is Peter, who puts down the book, and rings for a nurse. She in turn brings the rest if the ‘’Tomas Cheer-leading squad’’. Marcus comes in last, almost shy if that is even possible. He definitely isn’t a hallucination.

There is so much to do for cleaning up the aftermath. So there is a brief time of sleep, brief time of talking and then he is ready to leave again. He is not on his own anymore. Humans are such strange creatures. All they need is a little love, and the world seems like a better place again. Or it would be if everything was as simple as that. There is talk of therapy, the doctors don’t want to let him out of the hospital so soon since they can’t explain some of the injuries he has sustained. Tomas can’t use demonic possession as an explanation if he doesn’t want to be committed to an institution, so he just shrugs and doesn’t offer an explanation at all. He feels restless already, ready to leave and move on. There is this feeling of need to serve, to help, and to be in church again. Not because his faith in the Church would have returned, but because he wants to thank God for being cleansed. Perhaps he is young and naïve, but neither Marcus nor Mouse really say it. 


	2. First reading

A reading from prophet Ezekiel (17:22-end)

_This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it_

Sunday is a simple affair. These days he likes a bit of simplicity. It gives him a sense of peace. Although the calendar hanging near the bed suggests it is February, sunshine does not appear till late in the afternoon. Although they seem to live in one of the warmest spots in the country, every morning going to the Church, Tomas still wears a jacket on top of his cassock. He knows that once the sun is out not need it, and Marcus will tease him about it. But the wind nips at his skin and musses his hair as soon as their door closes behind him.

They have been in the parish for two months now. Tomas likes it and he knows Marcus does too even if he grumbles. The church used to be locked at most times apart from the first Sunday of the month when their predecessor celebrated Mass. Tomas still does it on the first Sunday, but he also spends time in church on his own. He keeps it open for anybody who wants to step in and have a moment of quiet, a confession or simply feel the presence of the Lord moving in the place. It’s his quiet place of prayer and study.

After everything that happened, they had needed a new start. A new place to set seed and grow healthy roots. Both Tomas and Marcus. Nobody comes out of a possession without scars. Human mind is not made to accommodate another entity besides ones soul within the fragile cage of the body. And once the body catches up, the mind goes spiralling out of control, analysing and trying to make sense. But there is none.

The push comes from higher-ups in the Church. Once Tomas is declared fit to return to Ministry, they both get an offer to move to England. There are parishes starving for clergy and Tomas doesn’t have the strength to object. His soul is parched and his faith does not seem as solid as before. He doesn’t want to be a tender sapling, he wants to be a tree. But he thanks God every day, because He had the good will to send Marcus back to him.

 It’s more Bennett saying ‘thank you’ in his own way. Marcus would never really admit his fondness for the other man. But he doesn’t object the move even if it brings him back to a country he once left at the start of his journey.

Marcus often stands at their window with a glass of wine and waits for Tomas to come home. It’s like he does not really believe that it will happen. It could have all been so different, so he seems to want to hold onto this feeling of peace and belonging as much as possible. He waits for Tomas to come home, and cannot help but go back to the time in-between. Every emotion from that time is embedded in him like it happened when he left Mouse all those years ago. It’s bittersweet these days.

_It will produce branches and bear fruit and become a splendid cedar. Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches._

Marcus is tired. He wants to get drunk and forget everything. He wants to fall on his knees and pray. And in the end he does not know where he belongs anymore. His doubts cast shadows on his decisions and everywhere he turns, there seems to be another reminder of what he had and lost. What he could have lost.

He looks at Tomas’ profile while driving to the airport. This young remarkable man who could have died and yet prevailed. Marcus envies his faith. It’s not a bad envy. He just wishes to be twenty years younger and as convinced and eager as his friend. Are they friends? There is that and more. He looks back at Peter snoring softly in the back seat. Yes, there could have been a desert and yet the Lord decided to offer him an oasis. A place for peace.

England, he decides, is a good idea. It will allow them to recover and to try living again. He knows that Demons are never far away. They come like moths to the lantern God puts out in the form of Exorcists. Marcus does not know if he believes in God anymore, but he believes that Demons are real. No, he is lying to himself. He believes on God now more than in the last two years.

He needed the separation to be able to hear God again. And most likely God had always been there, but Marcus had turned off their connection. Self-doubt, confusion and guilt shadowed His voice, turned Marcus’ ears away, and did not let him hear. When the voice finally reached him, it had almost been too late. The memory of it is bittersweet.

_All the trees of the field will know that I the LORD bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it._

Every morning Tomas leaves for the church and Marcus waits till he hears the door close downstairs. The routine somehow set itself and he follows it. Most of the time he is still winging it, depending on what appears on their doorstep. Marcus has always enjoyed physical work, so he occupies himself as much as he can if there is nothing Tomas needs. He also uses the resources at his fingertips and continues to read and study. Effectively, Marcus is now like a personal secretary to the clergy. He helps Tomas celebrate Mass on the first Sunday but other than that - shies away from the pomp and circumstance. Church is still unfamiliar and cold to him. He doesn’t believe the compromised branches will ever cease to be exactly that. But he tries.

He secretly prays for Bennett too. They have their differences and Marcus can’t stand him on a good day, but he would never wish Bennett any harm. They all have had a role to play in the grand scheme of things, and Marcus now has a clearer picture than he did before. And it is mainly because of Bennett he has this new chapter in his life, so it’s not all bad.

Local youngsters like him more than Tomas. They talk to him because of the rough around the edges look, the no-bullshit attitude and the solid advice he gives. And Marcus does not snitch. He keeps their secrets, referring to his own oaths and even though Tomas doesn’t always approve, he never objects. Tomas puts a lot of trust in him these days, and sometimes Marcus doesn’t really understand why. He does not think he is cut out for working with children, but they seem to like him. Tomas is a bit too clean cut for them. The collar is also scary, so they chose the next best thing in their eyes which happens to be a bi-sexual ex-Priest and an exorcist. Not that Marcus would ever say that out loud.

His day usually starts the same way. Coffee first, then shower. He often prays while the hot water cascades down his body. It is, in Marcus’ mind, one of the purest ways of prayer. Like the baptism of John, he thinks. But a prayer a day keeps a Demon away… or some such fiddle-faddle.

 Breakfast, another coffee, then whatever work needs doing. There is strange domesticity in their current lifestyle and for the first time in a long time Marcus feels something akin to piece.  He is not alone anymore, he couldn’t be.

God had heard his agony and had brought Tomas back. Somehow, without Marcus even praying for that. God knew what he needed the most, and the rest clicked into place after that.

Marcus had looked for Peter, taken the offer of a ride, and they had gone in search for Tomas. He still remembers the pain in his chest, and how it had eased a little bit when Peter’s fingers caught his own fidgeting ones. It had felt like a part of him had been healed. He had called Peter crazy for just getting in the car and driving where Marcus asked him to, but it seemed like the only thing he could do to catch up with Tomas and Mouse. He hadn’t even thought about Church or Demons, or Bennett.

They had spent six weeks recovering after their six month separation and the long and exhausting flight over the pond. And not once Peter questioned them, not once did he seemed annoyed at them during that time. Marcus is so grateful for this silent support, and, he realises, he is so in love with this man he doesn’t really know. But God has brought them here, and He has a plan for everything. So when their healing period comes to a close, Marcus puts real effort in getting to know Peter.

And really, it also helps him to start to know himself.


	3. Second reading

A reading from Paul’s 2nd letter to the Corinthians (5:6-10, 14-17)

_We are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it._

Never in a million years would Peter Osborne have imagined to give up his boat in the States and move halfway around the world to live with two Catholics. He is a man of science after all. It does not mean he doesn’t believe. It simply means there are other priorities in his life. That is until he meets Marcus Keane and Tomas Ortega.

He doesn’t believe in demons when he first meets Marcus. Their connection is instant and strong but Peter doesn’t quite understand why. Yes, it has been a little lonely but surely he is old enough to not feel like a schoolboy with a crush. The kiss they share in the dark is electric and full of yearning on both sides. Both men instantly know they need to stop themselves before everything else is forgotten.

Marcus doesn’t speak much on the way back but he reaches out to squeeze Peter’s fingers on the steering wheel and kisses him before leaving. It’s brief and soft, but it’s enough.

What follows is such an ultimate mess. Peter doesn’t hear from Marcus for a while, but the island is small and news travel fast. He cannot stop the worry gnawing at his insides. There is more to the story of Marcus Keane than he’s told Peter. When the phone rings, however, it isn’t Marcus looking for him. It’s someone else.

Peter would have thought meeting Tomas would be awkward. He sees the love and fondness this young man has for Marcus Keane, but their meeting isn’t weird and it isn’t awkward. They have a beer and Tomas tells Peter a rough story of what happened on the island. Peter thinks that some of it doesn’t ring quite the truth, but he’s willing to let it slide. Too much information at the same time is not healthy.

He meets Mouse too. She intimidates him and intrigues him at the same time. She can also out-drink both of them and is also smarter and more cunning than anybody Peter has ever met in his life.

It takes Peter a while to find Marcus. Or for Marcus to find him. It seems they both are looking or the other. He finally does and it says something about the other man’s state of mind. Something in the back of his head says that Marcus is pretty hard to find unless he wants to be found or simply does not care.

Marcus looks relieved when Peter is the one standing on the other side of the motel door. His bag is packed. They drive in silence. Peter remembers the raw emotions Marcus allowed him to see on the boat, but this Marcus doesn’t resemble that one. He is fidgety, and doesn’t engage in conversation. _Not one for sitting still…._

Peter reaches out and squeezes his fingers, smiling when there is a response. Marcus doesn’t pull away, and they keep holding hands all the way to where Tomas and Mouse last checked in.

_For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad._

They get a proper lead on Mouse and Tomas out of the blue through Bennett. Peter doesn’t ask, he just knows they have to drive, and they have to do it now. The thrill of a chase, a race against time feels exciting even in Peter’s age. He manages not to get arrested for speeding.

When he steps out of the car at a different motel six hours later, he sees an ambulance and a police car. EMTs are loading Tomas into the back of the ambulance, and a police officer is questioning Mouse. It looks like another messy business. One look towards Tomas and Peter knows it’s not good.

Marcus makes a pained sound, like he had been deprived of these two for years and not just six weeks. Peter has barely stopped the truck before Marcus is out and moving. Mouse turns to him and narrows her eyes. She calls Marcus a bastard and slaps him across the face before hugging him as tight as she can, whispering something in his ear, motioning towards the ambulance.

‘’What happened?’’ he asks while they drive to the hospital, voice tight and quiet.

‘’What do you think?’’ Mouse shoots back, but she isn’t challenging him.

Peter realises she is as concerned as the rest of them. 

‘’I told him… I told him to be careful,’’ Marcus says through clenched teeth.

‘’And he was careful. There was no other way. It wasn’t his fault, Marcus. This time Tomas wasn’t just rushing in and trying to be a hero. He knows better now. It was… it was a very old entity, and it wasn’t giving up without a fight’’.

‘’I can’t lose him, Mouse. Not again…’’ those are the last words Marcus speaks before they reach the hospital, and he sounds lost and broken.

‘’Don’t be so dramatic,’’ she brushes him off, but there is concern and fondness in her tone of voice.

Peter wants to help, he wants to protect Marcus from the pain he seems to be feeling, but there is nothing he can do apart from following him and Mouse towards a long wait at Tomas’ bedside. At first Doctors don’t want to let them anywhere near the younger man, but Peter flashes his government ID and it seems to open doors. Not that he’d ever tell the poor nurse that he is a Fishing and Wildlife official. She doesn’t need to know that.

Tomas’ condition is serious, but it doesn’t seem to be life threatening. He is soon moved from the ICU to a room that allows Marcus to sit beside him and stare at Tomas’ unmoving features.

They take shifts. Drink coffee. Marcus prays. Mouse doesn’t stick around all the time but she promises to wait for Tomas to wake up. It takes three and a half days for Tomas to return to them. If Peter would have been the religious type, he would have thanked whomever it was he needed to thank. For now he just allows himself to take a deep breath and go with it.

When Tomas is finally discharged, they wait for him outside of the hospital. Marcus doesn’t even bling, but hugs the younger man, his shoulders sagging in relief. Tomas just smiles fondly and hugs Marcus as tight as he can. Relief, anxiety and love. So much love. Peter re-connects with Tomas instantly. They have met before, but it feels different now. It feels like it means more than just a meeting. Peter doesn’t always believe in signs or omens, he doesn’t even believe in God half of the time, but this meeting makes something warm and familiar blossom in his chest. He hugs Tomas, allowing his hands to slide across the younger man’s back for a brief moment. He can feel the muscle under the thin cotton of Tomas’ shirt, and suddenly wants to kiss him. He doesn’t, because Mouse is still here, and Tomas is a priest. He marks the feeling and pushes it to the back of his mind for later examination.

_For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again._

Peter always thought he would be the lone wolf. His life after the military was crap and he still struggles with what they now call PTSD on a regular basis. Being on his own and on the water used to help until it didn’t anymore. He is lonely and knows it, but doing his job on a remote island is not the best dating scene. However, he dislikes loud crowds and too many people around make him claustrophobic and sometimes trigger anxiety. Perhaps being on his own is really better.

And then he meets an ex-Priest, and somehow finds himself on a plane, between Tomas Ortega and Marcus Keane. On the plane to England nonetheless. Perhaps this is exactly the plan of the man upstairs. Peter sighs and orders a beer. It’s going to be a crappy beer, but he needs something. Flying isn’t his thing.  

Marcus puts his head on Peter’s shoulder and Tomas’ squeezes his fingers. If he’s to start from ground zero again, at least he’s not doing it on his own. They don’t speak of their arrangement, they haven’t even spoken about their final destination. Call it God’s will if you must, but Peter is somehow content at the prospect.

The guy from the church who organized this whole thing looked at him suspiciously, but Peter couldn’t give two shits. His focus is elsewhere and the church can stuff it where the sun don’t shine. A couple of years ago he would have never just left everything and moved to another continent without knowing what was going to happen once the plane landed. But now he’s way too old for regrets. It isn’t like leaving a wife and kids behind.

_So from now on we regard no-one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!_

They end up in a lovely traditional English cottage. There is a garden for Marcus and there are places to sail for Peter. There is a church for Tomas. It is remote, it is reasonably warm, and the closest town provides everything they need.

For the first week or so Peter keeps watch while Tomas and Marcus spend days in prayer and meditation. Something inside of both of them is broken, and the only way to fix it is strip away everything old. Nothing worldly seemingly exists for both of them, and Peter thinks that this is what God did during the time of creation. It will take more than just a week, but it’s a start. He has never witnessed faith in such primal and pure way.

Peter is sitting outside one evening, enjoying a beer, listening to the nature doing its thing when the door opens behind him. Marcus sits down on the stone step beside him, his own beer in hand.

‘’Thank you,’’ the ex-priest says, taking a swing from the bottle.

‘’For what?’’ Peter asks, brow furrowed in confusion.

‘’For being here, for giving us time… for not running away as soon as we set our feet over the threshold. I don’t know…’’ Marcus is clearly looking for the right words and Peter understands. There never was rejection, just Marcus Keane trying to protect him from the world he and Tomas live in. That illusion is now shattered, but Marcus is still flesh and blood. Here.

Peter reaches out and squeezes Marcus’ knee. He’s made out of tougher stuff than this. He, Peter also realises, does quite enjoy the company. It has been years since he’s had that. Ever since he got out of the plane and his senses started functioning again, there has been no anxiety, no fear.

‘’Team effort,’’ he finally says and touches Marcus’ fingers. ‘’It’s a new chapter. I personally would love to get to know you both properly’’.

He is glad they never made this about sex. It would have been so easy to just fall into bed back when they shared that first kiss. But they didn’t, and it was for the best. Peter doesn’t want this to be just a quick tumble in the sheets. There is so much more than that, and now it seems to reassure Marcus that Peter isn’t going anywhere. He can find something to do here and be useful. They have a roof above their head, and there will be money coming in to buy food with. Life is actually good.

‘’I know this whole religion thing is not really… entirely your cuppa,’’ Marcus says, his accent thickening.

‘’But it’s yours. Now you’ve made me all curious,’’ Peter attempts to lighten the mood. ‘’So we share the bread and wine… or beer and peanuts. I don’t need to be in church every week to be able to understand how much it means to you and Tomas. It’s fine, Marcus, stop fidgeting’’.

‘’I’m not fidgeting’’.

And then Marcus leans in and kisses him. It’s tentative, exploring, but it’s definitely not without passion. There is definitely passion and yearning, and questions and answers in that kiss. Peter couldn’t have asked for more. Marcus is eager even if he seems nervous about the whole thing. It turns heated pretty quickly. It’s all tongues and teeth and fingers digging into Peter’s flesh. They pull apart, breathing heavily and Marcus touches his forehead to Peter’s.

‘’I’ve… It’s been a while,’’ the exorcist finally says, his breath hot on Peter’s lips.

‘’This is not a race, Marcus. I’m here for the whole nine yards’’.

And Marcus thinks that this is a declaration of love and devotion like no other. He is not going to screw this up, he can’t. He screwed up before, but he promises that Peter will be different. God has been kind to him, he does not want to tempt his luck with being a child. Sometimes he realizes that his emotional age is only just catching up to his physical age, but this way of living could be good for that too. He can find his feet in church and in faith, and he can learn to be a lover and a friend without so many words.  Settle down, if that is possible for someone like Marcus Keane. God spoke to him in that harbour, and let him onto the right path.

Their dynamic shifts after that. There is more touching and more openness in their household. They try to have dinner together every evening unless Tomas is busy with something at the Church, or Peter is out on a job. They share household duties and cooking, and Marcus allows himself to learn the little things Peter and Tomas like. He has never paid attention to other people and their likes and dislikes. But now he has the time and the possibility.

He learns that Peter is grumpy in the morning before coffee, and refuses to get out of bed before he’s had his first cup. He likes to wrap himself around Marcus, and sometimes it feels as if Peter is not sure if Marcus will be there in the morning. He is, he is definitely not going anywhere. Sleeping in the same bed has come so naturally to both of them, but the first few weeks it is more about love and comfort, human touch they both crave rather than anything else. Marcus is still learning things about his own body and sexuality is still a mystery to him. Peter has been on his own for so long, that the subject of sex doesn’t bother him. He knows he would be happy not having any in the long run if Marcus wouldn’t be comfortable with it. He enjoys the shared space, the intimacy that is so much more important than the physical release. He isn’t a young man anymore either. And luckily, once Marcus discovered the joys of simply sharing a bed, he hasn’t looked back on the decision.

Marcus learns something new about himself every day as well. Living out of a bag might have seemed glamorous when he was young, but now he finds comfort in a soft bed, fresh sheets, and hot food. He enjoys finding the little things he can tease Peter and Tomas about. Domesticity has never before really been a part of his life.

Tomas, it turns out, is an early riser. He runs in the morning, comes home, downs a glass of orange juice, showers, and then prays for half an hour before eating breakfast and going to the Church. He talks to himself while working on a Homily, and hates interruptions while trying to work on particularly challenging bits of the Scripture. He likes Marcus’ input, and often asks for Peter’s opinion.

They find ways to have space. Tomas locks himself in the study, or spends time in the Church Vestry. Peter goes out on a boat. He still loves the water, and it gives him time to be with his own thoughts.

Marcus goes for a long walk and visits the local library. Or he uses the time both Peter and Tomas are away to listen to old records as loud as he wants. They don’t have any immediate neighbours that would object, so Marcus doesn’t care of the sound system is turned on to its loudest setting.


End file.
